Who builds Georgia's
data centers?

Georgia is building 7.1 GW of new AI data centers across 31 sites. 1.3 GW is already running, and 5.8 GW is still being built. The biggest builders here are Microsoft, (undisclosed), Amazon (AWS), QTS.

At the busiest point, about 11,146 skilled workers will be on these sites at once, across all the trades. But the work is not split evenly — some trades will be short, and some will not. That is what decides whether it is worth training up.

Should you train up for this? It depends on the trade. In Georgia, the data centers look most short on ironworkers, carpenters, pipefitters, and electricians. Those are the best bets right now. Here is the read, trade by trade.

Ironworkers — worth training up: YES, big shortage. At the busiest point the data centers need about 1,567 ironworkers, but only about 132 of Georgia's ironworkers are free to take it on — the rest are busy with their regular jobs, which do not stop. That leaves Georgia short about 1,435. When builders cannot find enough ironworkers, the ones already working put in overtime (bigger paychecks), and builders pay to train new people and bring in workers from other states.

Carpenters — worth training up: YES, tight. The data centers need about 1,916 carpenters at the busiest point — close to all of the ~2,405 carpenters Georgia has free for this kind of work. Expect overtime, steady work, and builders willing to train.

Pipefitters — worth training up: YES, tight. The data centers need about 1,219 pipefitters at the busiest point — close to all of the ~1,882 pipefitters Georgia has free for this kind of work. Expect overtime, steady work, and builders willing to train.

Electricians — worth training up: YES, tight. The data centers need about 3,135 electricians at the busiest point — close to all of the ~5,185 electricians Georgia has free for this kind of work. Expect overtime, steady work, and builders willing to train.

Network/low-voltage technicians — could go either way. The data centers need about 697 network/low-voltage technicians, and Georgia has about 1,775 free for this kind of work. Enough to mostly cover it, but it will be busy, with some overtime.

Sheet metal workers — could go either way. The data centers need about 348 sheet metal workers, and Georgia has about 962 free for this kind of work. Enough to mostly cover it, but it will be busy, with some overtime.

Plumbers — probably not, just for this. The data centers need about 522 plumbers, and Georgia already has about 1,882 free for this kind of work. Plenty. Still steady work, but no special data-center shortage.

Data center technicians — worth training up: YES. Once these data centers open they will need about 1,037 data center technicians to run them, day and night. These are permanent jobs, and there are not enough local data center technicians to fill them — so they hire and train. Steady, long-term work.

These are some of the best-paying jobs you can get without a four-year degree. When a trade is short, builders run overtime and pay to train, and experienced workers can clear $100,000 a year, with health care and a pension through the union.

The building jobs run for a few years; the jobs that run the data centers last longer. Either way, a shortage is good news if you are in that trade. To start in Georgia, look at the apprenticeship programs for the trade you want. Sources: a national survey of data-center building plans, plus U.S. jobs and pay data.